The Bible Lore Podcast

Latest Episodes:

BATM 9: Samson (2018) (feat. Jon Gabrus & Julian Feeld) Oct 14, 2026

Show notes

That's right, we've got the boys from @Super Structure with Julian Feeld on the show to talk about 2018's forgotten 300 wannabe, Samson. This episode, as always, arrives two weeks early for paid subscribers.

This one is a stinker (they don't even let Samson have sex with the sex worker!), but I almost want to recommend it for attempting fun. You've got Billy Zane, Rutger Hauer, that one guy who plays Jasper in Twilight, even Lindsay Wagner!

Join the Patreon to support the show and get access to episodes two weeks early!

https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

Ep. 34: The Messiah, Pt. 3 Sep 30, 2026

Show notes

In this miniseries finale pulled heavily from Herodotus, Cyrus the Great meets a hubristic end. His son Cambyses conquers Egypt but finds failure in Sudan and Algeria. There's farting and heads dunked in blood. This is a serious podcast. Also the prologue is an origin story for cuneiform translation, and I talk about Solomon the Great. This shit's got it all, gang.

Subscribe to the Patreon if you're able:

https://www.patreon.com/biblelorepodcast

Bibliography:

https://www.thetechbubble.info/p/how-much-a-dollar-cost

Matthew Waters - 'Ancient Persia';

Matthew Waters - 'King of the World';

Radner, Moeller, Potts, et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East, Vol. V';

Christian Frevel - 'History of Ancient Israel';

Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible';

https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9819d1v6

BATM 8: David (2025) (feat. Propagandos) Sep 03, 2026

Show notes

Due to a combination of new employment opportunities, the Spokane Fires (hey, that's where I live!), and a variety of other issues, I've been unable to finish the Cyrus series (check back soon). However, all is not lost, as Conner and Alek from Propagandos are here to talk me through Angel Studios' 2025 musical adaptation of 1 Samuel: David. This movie is fairly forgettable, but we get plenty of time to talk about the weirdness of Angel Studios.

Check out Propagandos wherever you get podcasts! Here's Spotify and Apple Podcasts:

https://open.spotify.com/show/54HXEDT1w5QkZCxAwkMktZ?si=281e02c82a384de5

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/propagandos/id1726235798

BATM 7: Bad Lieutenant (feat. Hesse Deni) Aug 04, 2026

Show notes

"NO MAN CAN KILL ME, I'M BLESSED." That's right folks, we've got Hesse here to talk about one of the greatest Catholic movies of all time, 1992's Bad Lieutenant, directed by Abel Ferrara.

This episode is a bit unfocused but I hope you all enjoy it anyway.

Check out Hesse's podcasts!

Seeking Derangements: https://www.patreon.com/seekingderangements

Trouble in River City: https://www.patreon.com/cw/TroubleInRiverCity

Movie Mindset: https://www.patreon.com/cw/chapotraphouse/collections

SUPPORT THIS SHOW ON PATREON:

https://www.patreon.com/cw/biblelorepodcast

Ep. 33: The Messiah, Pt. 2 Jul 22, 2026

Show notes

The saga of Cyrus continues while the Exile ends. But what does Exile really mean?

Today, I explore Second Isaiah, Ezekiel, and a little bit of Ezra. What do these wildly different works say about the end of the Exile? And how does that line up with what archaeology tells us about late 6th century Jerusalem?

Join the Patreon:

http://patreon.com/biblelorepodcast

Bibliography:

Hallo & Younger - 'The Context of Scripture, Vols. 1-3';

Radner, Moeller, et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East Vol. 5';

Matt Waters - 'King of the World';

Herodotus, Sélincourt (transl.) - 'The Histories';

Joseph Blenkinsopp - 'Isaiah 40-55 (Anchor Yale)';

Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary';

Christian Frevel - 'History of Ancient Israel';

Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition';

Daniel McClellan - 'YHWH's Divine Images';

Michael Dick (ed.) - 'Born in Heaven, Made on Earth';

Levine, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Annotated New Testament';

Bob Becking - 'We All Returned As One!';

Robert J. Miller - 'Helping Jesus Fulfill Prophecy';

https://nypost.com/2025/10/13/world-news/im-here-to-thank-america-israel-flooded-with-us-adoration/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wh11CuVUZPY

BATM 6: Exodus: Gods and Kings (feat. Chris Wade) Jul 19, 2026

Show notes

Apologies for neglecting the standard feed! On the other hand, that means you'll be getting two episodes this week and another in two weeks! And even better, despite Chris saying he can't announce anything, now he can! Check out Chunks, a new comedy anthology that Chris put together and produced along with fellow Chapo co-host Amber Frost!

https://patreon.com/chunkstv

Anyway, onto episode info:

It's Bible at the Movies time and boy is today's movie a stinker! Ridley Scott what are you doing??? At the very least, I had a great time discussing this turd with returning guest Chris Wade. Hooray!

Ep. 32: The Messiah, Pt. 1 Jun 10, 2026

Show notes

Cyrus the Great arrives, Nabonidus falls, and several people eat human meat as we sort through Herodotus to tell the story of the rise of Persia in the mid-6th century BCE.

Support the show by joining the Patreon:

https://patreon.com/biblelorepodcast

Helpful map:

https://www.worldhistory.org/image/265/empire-of-cyrus-the-great/

Check out the episode of Super Structure I was featured in:

https://www.patreon.com/SuperStructure/posts/late-great-earth-159135809

Bibliography:

https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/cyaxares-gk/

https://www.livius.org/sources/content/nabonidus-cylinder-from-sippar/

Paul-Alain Beaulieu - 'Reign of Nabonidus';

Matt Waters - 'King of the World';

Herodotus, Sélincourt (trnsl.) - 'The Histories';

C.J. Gadd - 'The Fall of Nineveh: The Newly Discovered Babylonian Chronicle';

M. David Litwa - 'How the Gospels Became History';

Bonus Interview: David Perry on Public Scholarship, Medieval Popes, and Disability May 19, 2026

Show notes

David M. Perry stops by the show to promote his new book, The Public Scholar: A Practical Handbook, a book that is good enough that you'll forget you're reading a manual on how to pitch op-eds and trade volumes. Because David has a wide knowledge base, I used his book as a platform to discuss a variety of subjects, from "Who are your guys?" for medieval popes to how changes in disability policy could impact millions of Americans today to even a little discussion of what the Bible meant to people before the advent of the printing press. This one's good, gang!

Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

Buy the book: https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/54219/public-scholar

Read David's recent article on disability policy: https://www.ms.now/opinion/social-security-disability-payments-trump-new-rule

Ep. 31: The Writing on the Wall May 06, 2026

Show notes

Apologies to my Spotify listeners, I thought I had addressed an issue to their satisfaction but they removed the episode anyway. Here is a reupload of episode 31.

This one's all about Nabonidus, the last king of Babylon, an oddball devotee of the moon god Sin whose reign ends up becoming the basis for some of Daniel's most infamous stories.

Support the show on Patreon:

https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

Buy Between Two Rivers by Moudhy Al-Rashid:

https://bookshop.org/p/books/between-two-rivers-ancient-mesopotamia-and-the-birth-of-history-moudhy-al-rashid/9a6c9713e7d1cb21

Keyvan Golsorkhi on Iran:

https://www.thenation.com/article/world/iran-diaspora-war-trump-israel/

Data Over Dogma on seeing the face of God:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohh4Huzfn2U

Bibliography:

Paul-Alain Beaulieu - 'Nabonidus the Mad King';

Paul-Alain Beaulieu - 'Reign of Nabonidus, King of Babylon';

Moudhy Al-Rashi - 'Between Two Rivers';

John Collins - 'Daniel';

Hallo & Younger - 'The Context of Scripture Vol 1-3';

Marc van de Mieroop - 'A History of the Ancient Near East';

Radner, Moeller, Potts, et al - 'The Oxford History of the Ancient Near East, Volume V';

Berlin, Brettler, et al - 'The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition';

Robert Alter - 'The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary';

Pietersma, Wright - 'A New English Translation of the Septuagint';

The 12 Tribes: An Interview with Andrew Tobolowsky (plus a small announcement) Apr 07, 2026

Show notes

Hello wonderful Patreon subscribers and freeloaders (whom I also love). Today's episode is a special one, an extended conversation with Andrew Tobolowsky about the myth of the 12 tribes of Israel in the Hebrew Bible and then later in everything from early Christianity to the Black Hebrew Israelites.

Plus, a small announcement, now in custom written form: the pace of this show has slowed down due to my gaining of employment (steel foundry maintenance helper, an insane job for the young or delusional-and-mid-30s). Because this happened nearly overnight (I applied and started working within four days), I haven't had time to address the slowdown until now, nearly a month after my last release. My sincere apologies. Here's the rub: for the near future, I'll be shifting to releasing one episode per month, with occasional bonus content for Patrons only, and a move to two-week early access for all content for my Patreon subscribers, the blessed Shaddayim. If that's not enough content for your $5, I totally get it; I'm obviously as bummed as you are that the show has slowed down. It's no worries at all. You'll still be able to enjoy all free scripted episodes and Bible at the Movies episodes on the free tier. My main goal, which I will not abandon despite its Quixotic nature, is to tell the entire history of the Bible and how it accrued the lore it did in a format that's accessible to just about anyone. The breadth of this journey and the massive scope of this history is something that could keep this show going for many years, until I inevitably have to figure out how to tell the story of a quarter of the planet in a coherent way. I hope you'll all stick with me through this slower period, cuz I'm not leaving.

Buy Andrew's books: The Myth of the Twelve Tribes of Israel Israel and its Heirs in Late Antiquity

Subscribe to the Patreon to support this show: https://www.patreon.com/BibleLorePodcast

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